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Posted on Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 5:06 p.m.

Police: U-M students report drinks may have been spiked with drugs

By AnnArbor.com Staff

University of Michigan police sent out an alert to the campus community Tuesday warning of unconfirmed reports in recent months that students’ drinks have been spiked with drugs.

U-M police told students not to take drinks from unknown sources.

MLive file photo

One student reported to Ann Arbor police that she may have been drugged at an off-campus party Friday night, according to the alert. She said she drank several drinks at the party in the 600 block of South State Street, then vomited and blacked out. She said she was not assaulted.

Anyone with information is asked to call University of Michigan Police at (734) 763-1131 or the Ann Arbor Police Tip Line (734) 794-6939 or email tips@a2gov.org.

Police also issued the following tips:

Do not take drinks from unknown sources.

Report any possible drugging incidents to police as soon as possible to preserve evidence. Timely reporting is essential.

Suspicious incidents can be reported to the Confidential Tip Line 1-800-863-1355.

Police said it's not their goal to prosecute a person for underage drinking who reports a potential drugging incident.

Comments

Hactin

Thu, Feb 28, 2013 : 5:05 p.m.

Do not expect this community to provide toxicology services for victims of spiked drinks - they don't.
If you go to a hospital, they won't perform tests.
You'll be told that you have psychological issues.
You'll be told that you should have not put yourself into such a situation.
The people who spike drinks get away with it.
It's real.
Ann Arbor has all the resources it needs to make this service available to its residents,
but it's not a priority.
Ann Arbor could lead the nation in providing this service and driving all the drink spikers
out of business, and the students could lead this if the city won't.
What would you say to your daughter if she told you that she thought that she had been such a victim, but there was no way to get proof?
Why aren't all of the women's crisis centers demanding this testing availability?
Why aren't they pooling their resources and making it happen?
How many lab technicians are there on the UM campus?

hjocque

Thu, Jan 31, 2013 : 1:45 a.m.

To everyone saying &quot;oh it's probably just alcohol poisoning&quot;
Yep! But, BUT! don't assume that that date rape drugs are not an option because of that possibility.. Yes, consuming too much alcohol causes blacking out and vomiting. So do a number of date rape drugs: http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/womenshealth/factsheets/date.htm
There is literally no way to know what this was without a tox report. You can guess this is some foolish freshman who had too much to drink. Possible. Or, also very possible, this could be someone fully experienced with drinking. Someone who drank enough to get a buzz and found herself experiencing symptoms that she would not expect from how much she consumed (passing out, throwing up). That would be consistent with a date rape drug. Heck it would be consistent with a case of food poisoning or a head injury or just an unfortunate night. We just cannot know right now.
The point is, if someone feels that their body is reacting in a way that seems to suggest the criminal use of drugs, they have EVERY RIGHT to report it and dismissing it outright without additional knowlege seems foolish. This is part of how people protect themselves and should not be dimissed.
Source: I was a volunteer responder at a college clinic. Saw and took care of plenty of alcohol poisonings, and also saw/cared for someone who had consumed a spiked drink. There's plenty of difference in the immediate histories.

Billy

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 1:06 p.m.

&quot;then vomited and blacked out. &quot;
Just gotta point this out....these are the symptoms of over consumption of alcohol too....

BlueEyesGirl

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 2:19 a.m.

Either way, it's a good policy to monitor your partying and take proper precautions.

Barbara scott

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 1:04 a.m.

I think if u. Do crime u do the time

Martha Cojelona Gratis

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 12:59 a.m.

Is it possible that this was a simple case of drinking beer before liquor?

smokeblwr

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 11:36 p.m.

If I had a dollar for every time I blacked out and vomited I'd have probably around 13 dollars.

Ann Arbor Nurse

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 2:29 p.m.

I do love craft beers!

JBK

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 3:51 a.m.

Ann Arbor Nurse - I want to party with you! Where do you hang out? Ahsleys just added a few more craft beers to their menu. Any interest?
As for the other posters on here, I can't even count the times that I passed out. I had 4 years in the military followed by 4 years in a Fraternity. Ugh!:)

And at this very moment, some students are wondering where they can get some of those spiked drinks.

GoNavy

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 11:02 p.m.

I often get a rise out of what A2.com will publish as news.

Angry Moderate

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 10:56 p.m.

Unless they did a drug test, I'm not seeing any evidence to rule out the possibility that these &quot;incidents&quot; are self-inflicted alcohol poisoning.

Angry Moderate

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 7:19 p.m.

Well, the article doesn't indicate that the police have conducted a drug test, and those type of drugs only stay in the system for a few days.

Robert Granville

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 3:43 p.m.

Isn't that how all these cases go until there is a toxicology report? Not unusual.

HONDO

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 10:53 p.m.

Just remember a good way to avoid, dont drink if your not 21....

Macabre Sunset

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 10:21 p.m.

quoting: &quot;She said she drank several drinks at the party in the 600 block of South State Street, then vomited and blacked out. She said she was not assaulted.&quot;
This seems like a fairly regular experience in the life of a college student who indulges in weekend binge-drinking.
Is there anything in the report indicating whether a toxicology report was done? Any justification for the warning other than wanting to repeat the usual safety precautions that most students routinely ignore?
If not, I'd wonder if this story came from the Onion.

JBK

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 : 3:43 a.m.

Amen! During my undergrad days living in a Fraternity house, we used to have &quot;jungle juice&quot; parties which essentially would be anything and everything. We would scatter huge garbage cans around the room, dump multiple bottles of rum, vodka, tequila, triple sec, etc.. into each garbage can. You then slice up oranges, lemons, limes, and watermelon. The next morning reminded us of that scene in &quot;gone with the wind&quot; where all these bodies looked like they had been shot&quot;, but they were sleeping (and I use that term lightly). Bottom line is this kid got hammered and either due to shame or guilt, now claims she was drugged. Right! Good luck with that one!

alan

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 11:54 p.m.

My reaction exactly.

GoNavy

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 11:01 p.m.

Couldn't agree more. Just another student who didn't realize how much s/he was drinking, drank too much, and feels stupid. Obviously, the only explanation for the vomit and blacking out were the &quot;drugs,&quot; not the alcohol in the &quot;several&quot; drinks.

tdw

Tue, Jan 29, 2013 : 10:48 p.m.

I guess A2.com didn't think my comment was as funny as I thought it was